The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Chapter 445: Jinshi

This is also the moment when all candidates are truly admitted to the university, and it is an honor that they will remember for a lifetime!

Early in the morning on the day of the announcement, all the candidates had to wear robes, hats and boots and gather in the Taihe Hall Square in advance. Accompanied and witnessed by civil and military officials, they participated in the ceremony of announcing the results.

You absolutely cannot be late for such an important moment.

Zhang Laoer and Xu urged their son to get up early in the morning. It was still dark outside and there was a full moon hanging in the sky.

Qian Youyi had already instructed his servants to prepare breakfast.

Zhang Ping'an was a steady person. He ate half his fill and then stood up to go out. Such an important matter should be dealt with sooner rather than later.

As soon as I went out, I met my fifth brother-in-law at the gate, and the servants following him were holding a lot of firecrackers in their hands.

"What is this?" Zhang Pingan stopped and asked.

Fang Ziqi smiled and replied, "Today is a good day for you to pass the imperial examination. After the ceremony, a palace maid will come out to announce the good news. I have to wait here first. My parents are old, so I can help them with anything. I also brought a few firecrackers to liven things up!"

After saying that, he immediately said, "Ping An, don't worry about me, go quickly, don't miss the time!"

"Thank you, fifth brother-in-law, you are so thoughtful," Zhang Ping'an bowed to express his gratitude.

Then, without further ado, he said goodbye to everyone in his family, got on the carriage and headed for the palace.

Even though I know that my fifth brother-in-law has his own little thoughts, it is always hard to dislike someone who is so thoughtful and speaks in a pleasant way.

After all, no one is perfect, and no one is a saint who has no desires or demands, including himself!

As long as we can be on the same front.

By the time we got near the palace gate, many people had already arrived and were getting off the bus one after another.

Zhang Ping'an saw his father-in-law, Minister Qian, and his third uncle, Qian Wei, and went up to greet them.

Minister Qian said, "It's just right that you two can go together. You two can keep each other company. I'll go first!"

After saying that, he went to a familiar colleague.

The remaining Zhang Ping'an and his uncle Qian Wei entered the palace together.

A young eunuch led everyone to the Taihe Hall Square, and they stood in order according to their ranking in the imperial examination, lining up on both sides of the Danbi, with odd-name candidates in the east team and even-name candidates in the west team.

The officials of the Honglu Temple had already set up two yellow tables, one on the east side of the hall and the other in the center of the red steps outside the hall. The imperial carriage was placed on the stone steps embroidered with Hetian jade coiled dragons.

The guard of honor stood on both sides.

The square, illuminated by rows of palace lanterns, was as bright as day, yet not noisy.

Some of the princes and court officials who had already arrived were also wearing court robes and lined up inside and outside the steps.

The atmosphere was very solemn and dignified.

At this moment, Zhang Pingan personally felt the majesty of imperial power.

They stood there quietly for nearly half an hour before all the new candidates and civil and military officials arrived.

A eunuch announced loudly: "The emperor has arrived! Kneel!!!"

The sound was long and drawn out.

Everyone in the square knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

"Stand up," a plain and childish voice was heard after a while.

The little emperor must have taken his seat.

Then, firecrackers and drums rang out.

The music is magnificent and full of vigor!

Then the Grand Secretary brought out the imperial edict with the candidates' rankings.

Finally, the interpreter sang the poem aloud.

Zhang Ping'an knew that after the recitation and the ceremony of announcing the results of the imperial examinations, the new scholars would leave the imperial city along with the large golden list with their names written on it.

The Golden List will be posted outside the south wall of the imperial palace for three days. This means your name will be on the Golden List!

The top three can even ride horses in a parade, escorted by palace guards and a band of musicians.

The scenery is infinite!

But this has nothing to do with me. I can't even hope for a top grade!

Because he had already expected that he would be a second-class Jinshi, Zhang Pingan was not too nervous at the moment.

But under the influence of the music, my heart was suddenly filled with great passion and anticipation for the future!

The announcement of the names of the candidates is different from the announcement of the results of the imperial examination. The names are announced from the first place onwards.

"Everyone, listen to my decree. Lu Huaixin, the top-ranked winner of the Jingcheng 3rd Palace Examination, is awarded the title of Number One Scholar and appointed as a Compiler in the Hanlin Academy. Step out!"

Anyone who can be a singer must be full of energy.

In ancient times when there were no loudspeakers, this sound resounded throughout the Taihe Hall Square and could be heard clearly.

As soon as the voice fell, the top scholar Lu Huaixin stepped out of the crowd, knelt down and kowtowed to express his gratitude.

Then a young eunuch will continue singing at the next palace gate until it reaches the last official who announces the good news. Then the official will ride out of the palace and go to each household along Zhuque Street to announce the good news. It has a strong sense of ritual!

Therefore, when the Jinshi candidates left the palace, many people in Lin'an City already knew their rankings, and many people, known or unknown, would follow to congratulate them along the way.

While Zhang Ping'an was lost in thought, the official continued, "Huo Zongqi, the second-place finisher in the first-class imperial examination of the third year of Jingcheng, is awarded the title of second-place winner and appointed editor of the Hanlin Academy. Step out!"

"Jiang Fengping, the third-place finisher in the first class of the Jingcheng 3rd year palace examination, is awarded the title of Tanhua (Three Places in the Imperial Examination) and appointed as an editor in the Hanlin Academy. Step out!"

Zhang Pingan raised his eyebrows when he heard this. He was not surprised that Huo Zongqi was the runner-up. This person was the champion in the provincial examination last year and was also in the top ten in the metropolitan examination.

However, Jiang Fengping made a big leap, jumping from the forties in the imperial examination to the top three.

The two men stepped out and kowtowed to express their gratitude.

After passing the first class, the next step is the second class of Jinshi.

"Li Chong, the first place winner of the second class in the Jingcheng third year palace examination, is awarded the title of Jinshi. Step out!"

"Wang Gaoxing, the second-place winner in the second class of the Jingcheng third year palace examination, is granted the title of Jinshi. Step out!"

"Lin Junhui, who placed third in the second class of the Jingcheng 3rd Palace Examination, is awarded the title of Jinshi. Step out!"

Zhang Pingan couldn't help but perk up when he heard the familiar name.

Third place in the second class is equivalent to sixth place in the country. This is a very good result for Lin Junhui.

Then, when the 20th place in the second class was reported, Zhang Pingan heard his uncle's name again.

"Qian Wei, who ranked 20th in the second class of the Jingcheng 3rd Palace Examination, is granted the title of Jinshi. Step out!"

It’s probably my turn soon, Zhang Pingan thought.

Also always ready to step out.

Who would have thought that after the 20th place, I didn’t hear my name until the 30th place.

Instead, many students who ranked lower than him were ranked in front, and even Luo, a classmate from Lianzhou School who came from a family of military generals, had finished singing.

Now Zhang Ping'an was really anxious. Only the top fifty were in the first and second class, and after the fiftyth place, they were all in the third class and were Jinshi graduates. Although there was only one character difference, the gap was extremely large.

It’s a bit like the difference between an ordinary first-class university and a 985 university today. They both seem good, but after entering the system, their academic qualifications will be subtly looked down upon.

And scheduling errands can make a big difference.

Although Zhang Ping'an didn't care about this, he couldn't control other people's opinions. The Ministry of Personnel's assessment paid great attention to those with a background in imperial examinations.

It would be best to be ranked second!

While Zhang Ping'an was daydreaming, he had already sung to the 43rd place.

Then came the forty-fourth, forty-fifth, and forty-sixth.

It can’t be that unlucky, Zhang Pingan smiled bitterly in his heart.

At the same time, we are also prepared to become one of the top three.

Unexpectedly, there was a sudden turn of events.

"Zhang Ping'an, the 47th person in the second class of the Jingcheng 3rd Palace Examination, has been granted the title of Jinshi. Step out!"

Finally I sang about myself!

"Huh," Zhang Pingan breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that. God was kind to him after all, and he finally got to the second place.

After stepping out of the line and kowtowed to express his gratitude, Zhang Ping'an returned to his original position and gently wiped the sweat from his palms with his sleeves.

I feel much more at ease now!

He answered the questions himself quite well, but if he were ranked in the top three, he would be so upset that he would have no tears to cry!

About half an hour later, the names of all the new scholars were announced.

Everyone, including civil and military officials, knelt down to express their gratitude.

Only then did the young emperor speak again, offering a few words of encouragement: "I have personally reviewed the talents of these students and am delighted to see today's grand occasion. I am deeply pleased. You have diligently studied for years and lived up to your youth. You have stood out among thousands of scholars. This is truly a blessing to the country and a glory to the nation. I hope you can take this as a new starting point, never forget your original aspirations, and forge ahead with perseverance."

The voice is clear and the tone is calm.

The ceremony of announcing the imperial edicts was now over.